This invention relates to a cushion foot assembly for a trailer landing gear support.
Cushioned feet for landing gears have been generally known for some years. Epstein U.S. Pat. No. 3,219,362 proposed the use of resilient blocks between upper and lower plates that were bolted together. The upper plate was bolted to a frustum welded on the lower end of the landing gear leg. Dalton et al U.S. Pat. No. 3,666,190 inserted a resilient toroid between the leg and the foot, the latter being crimped onto or bolted onto the leg. Dreyer et al U.S. Pat. No. 4,462,612 retained the foot with crimping onto the leg portion, holding an elastic pressure body in place. Ringe U.S. Pat. No. 4,634,144 crimped the foot over the leg to retain a wedge-shaped resilient member. Baxter U.S. Pat. No. 4,824,136 bolted the foot to the leg, with a resilient pad enclosed therebetween. It will be noted that all of these except the Epstein proposal enclose the pad so that it is not visible to evaluate its condition or potential replacement. Most of them, moreover, do not have the foot readily removable from the leg for replacement in case of damage to the foot. Such damage can readily occur, for example, if the trailer supported on a landing gear shifts, or the landing gear foot is lowered onto an uneven surface as on a rock, or a partially elevated foot strikes something during movement of the trailer. The typical marketed landing gear foot of the padded type has a fore-to-aft articulation of about five degrees, and a side-to-side articulation of about five degrees, such that placement on an uneven surface more than this angle can readily damage the foot and/or leg structure under the heavy load of the trailer. Replacement of deteriorated rubber pads is a problem with these prior units as can be readily envisioned. Rubber pads do deteriorate as by entry of mud, dirt, etc. into the housing, and by aging of the rubber, so that they should be periodically replaced. Damage to the foot also calls for replacement. Removal of the foot too often requires use of a cutting torch, followed by the problem of mounting another foot on the leg or alternatively replacement of the entire leg. These actions require specially trained repairmen. While the foot of the support in U.S. Pat. No. 4,634,144 can be removed for replacement, it only fits on the special leg as there shown.